Cheers and Jeers
JEERS: Earlier this month, officials in Lycoming County gave in to requests by supporters of former President Donald Trump to conduct a hand recount of all the 60,000 ballots cast in the county in the 2020 presidential election. Trump took close to 70% of the vote in the county, but his election-denying followers in Lycoming have insisted for the last two years that nefarious doings must have been afoot. The New York Times reported that the recount was carried out by 28 employees over three days, totaling 560 work hours. Was fraud uncovered? Not at all. Exactly eight votes shifted into Trump’s column, raising his total by one one-hundredth of a percent. Still, the true believers who insist that Trump was robbed of the presidency are carrying on, filing requests to see every application that was made for a mail ballot, and copies of every ballot that was cast. Forest Lehman, the county’s elections director, characterized it as “a needless bonfire of time, money and common sense,” and further called all the records requests “crazy,” adding, “You can quote me. They are insane.” With the 2024 presidential election cycle coming quickly into view, isn’t it well past time for 2020 election deniers to finally give it a rest?
CHEERS: This week, a new Canon-McMillan Middle School opened on 32 acres in North Strabane. Located across from the Allegheny Health Network Canonsburg Hospital, it has over 200,000 square feet, has three floors and an impressive array of features that should improve the experience for the seventh- and eighth-graders who will be passing through the building in the years ahead: updated technology labs, a music wing, spaces for collaboration and air conditioning. Dr. Greg Taranto, the district’s assistant superintendent, explained, “This is the combination of careful planning, a collaborative effort of our board, current and past, administration and faculty and staff coming together. This is what we should be doing in Canon-Mac. Our students deserve this type of facility that matches the type of teaching that is going on.”
CHEERS: Not being able to drive because of a suspended license puts people at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to employment, particularly in rural areas where public transportation is sparse or nonexistent. Southwestern Pennsylvania Legal Aid (SLPA) has launched a valuable new program it hopes will lower the number of people with suspended licenses, and help them get back on the road to employment. Using $250,000, which includes $50,000 from the Washington County Community Foundation, SPLA has established the Driver’s License Suspension Advocacy Program, and it will last for three years. Brian Gorman, SPLA’s executive director, described the commonwealth’s license suspension laws as “difficult and punitive,” and that licenses can end up being suspended for years. The organization also hopes to improve public education on driver’s license suspension laws. SPLA covers Washington, Fayette, Greene and Somerset counties. More information can be found at spla.org.